Police grabs engineer for swindling Zabzugu District Assembly

A self-acclaimed Geological Engineer who is into boreholes drilling business has been grabbed by the Northern Regional police command for swindling the Zabzugu District Assembly to the tune of little over GHS33,000.00.

Alfred J.Mahama, Manager of Tenzung Investment Company Limited, was picked up by the Regional police team with a collaborative effort of their counterpart in the Sawla/Tuna/Kalba District of the Savanna Region on Wednesday, December 4, 2019.

Alfred who is known among his business peers as 'JB' took 70 per cent of the contract sum of GHS47,000.00 to provide boreholes to three farming communities in June 2018.

But unknown to the District Assembly and Hon. Alhassan Umar, the Member of Parliament ( MP) for the Constituency who sponsored the Contract through his share of the MPs Common Fund, Alfred played a blatant scheme of engagement.

After taken the GHS33,872.40 been 70 per cent of the Contract sum, JB then went into hidden.

No amount of telephone calls nor text messages to JB to deliver the contract tickles his balls.

He is said to have gained notoriety of bilking his unsuspecting clients who entered contract with him through his Tenzung investment which drills boreholes.

The communities that JB blatantly deprived of the opportunity to have potable drinking water include Binyenkumdo, Bagamani Meampesam and Korikurugu.

However, luck eluded JB after almost two years of his sneaking deals with the District Assembly.

He was finally smoked out from his hideout at his native town in Sawla at midnight in the Catholic Mission Guest House, where he is being hidden and operating his swindling business.

JB, as he preferred to be called, has since been transferred to Tamale from Sawla, where the Anti-fraud unit of the polices are interrogating him regarding his defrauding tactics.

Hon Umar, MP for Zabzugu told THE REPUBLIC, JB was contracted to drill the three Boreholes to some deprived communities who crumble and walk a distance to access water in rivers and streams.

According to the MP, JB agreed and went to the project sites and did a geological investigation and sitting of the boreholes with a work plan.

In a letter dated 5th of June, 2018, JB wrote to the District Assembly through the MP, with a quotation of drilling and installation of hand pumps.

Among the Work Plan of the quotation that JB presented as part of his elaborate schemes were sitting of all three boreholes, mobilisation to site, drilling of all three boreholes, construction of concrete pads, test pumping, water quality test, boreholes disinfection and installation of all hand pumps which was to be completed within 28 days.

After doing the sitting and plan work on the project, JB demanded that 70 per cent of the contract sum be paid to enable him to carry out a diligent work and complete on schedule.

The lawmaker said, he wrote to the District Assembly to release part of his share of MPs Common Fund under the Social Intervention module to finance the Boreholes project.

Mr Umar said after the cheque of the face value of GHS33,872.40 was issued to JB in the name of Tenzung Investment, he never returns to the project site.

He said when JB was contacted on phone over the delay in executing the project, he gave excuses and promised he would return to the site and start the projects.

After several months of failed promised to honour the contract, the MP said JB conduct was reported to the police.

"It is almost two years and a project that was supposed to complete within 28 days, is yet to commence," the MP added.

Sources at the Northern Regional Police Command indicated that JB would be charge provisionally for defrauding by false pretence and put before the law court on Monday, December 9, pending further investigations.

Per the criminal laws of the country, should JB failed or refused to refund the money, he could face up to 15 years imprisonment when he is found guilty and sentenced.